Fraternity Celebrates 75 Years Of Activity

September 12, 1995|By KEITH INGRAM; Courant Correspondent

Housed in a simple, red brick building on Main Street, a local fraternity is preparing for its 75th anniversary. It's an organization to which many local leaders and civil rights pioneers have belonged, and one whose membership belies its humble home.

According to longtime member William Johnson, the Carpe Diem Fraternity Inc. was established in 1920 by five classmates at Hartford Public High School.

Howard Warring, Elmer Dickson, George Goodwin, Cedric Mills and Miles Whalley were still in high school, Johnson said, when they decided to form an organization that fostered social character and camaraderie among its members and provided role models for non-members, especially for other young men.

Art Johnson, a Hartford journalist, civil rights activist and member of the fraternity since 1935, said Carpe Diem blossomed between 1930 and 1950, as members returned to the city after college or from serving in the armed forces.

He said the fraternity's outlook shifted in response to the growth in maturity of its core membership, whose members expanded their mission to address the social ills of the time.

The fraternity often held dances to raise scholarship funds for aspiring college students and conducted seminars to help community members prepare for civil service entrance exams, Art Johnson said.

He said the fraternity, in an effort to help quell the city's civil unrest during the 1960s, allowed a local street gang to use the fraternity's house as a meeting place.

As a result of that gesture and the involvement of the brothers, he said, the gang's focus shifted to community activism and several of its members went on to become community leaders.

Today, said William Johnson, Carpe Diem's active membership is about 30 men. About 200 men have passed through its ranks since 1920.

``Nearly every African American man of note in Hartford'' has been a member of Carpe Diem, said Art Johnson.

William Johnson said the group's membership has included Walter ``Doc'' Hurley, founder of the Doc Hurley Classic high school basketball tournament; John C. Clark, Hartford's first African American council member; and Boce Barlow, a former municipal court judge and state senator.

Current members said recruitment of new members has slowed in recent years, but said the group is still very active in social and community affairs.

On the social side, Friday nights at the organization's headquarters, 2243 Main St., are not to be missed, said William Johnson and Art Johnson. The evenings feature classic soul music. Carpe Diem also sponsors annual trips, including this month's outing to the Hampton University vs. Grambling University football game in New York City.

William Johnson said the fraternity is actively involved with the community. During the holidays, for example, Carpe Diem donated turkeys to local churches for distribution to families in need.

He said the fraternity also has donated money to local high schools for new athletic equipment, sponsored youth athletic teams, conducted literacy workshops and is establishing a permanent scholarship fund.

William Johnson said that even though his fraternity's house is a place for members and their guests to gather, socialize and network in a comfortable atmosphere, the primary mission of the brothers of Carpe Diem is to inspire and uplift those around them.